SSTs, such as automated teller machines (ATMs), generate events to inform a management application of a change in state of a device or software in the SST. This allows the management application to monitor the status of the ATM. This also allows the management application to ascertain if the ATM requires, or will soon require, intervention, for example, from a technician, a media replenisher (receipt paper or cash), or the like.
Some events are generated through normal operation of the ATM (such events include cash low events, receipt paper low events, information events, and transaction-related events). Other events are generated when an authorised person opens the ATM (such as interlock events when a device is racked out to clear a jam, or replace a part on the device, when a supervisor mode is entered). Other events occur when an exception occurs during operation. Examples of these exceptions are software exceptions (memory leaks, stack overflows, and the like) and hardware exceptions (banknote pick failures, print failures, and the like).
Events are typically conveyed by a software management agent resident on the ATM to a remote management application. It is known for such software management agents to filter out certain events because they are expected during normal operation or routine maintenance (for example, an interlock event to indicate that a currency dispenser is racked out).
However, sometimes a device fails and generates a very large number of events. For example, the same event may be generated thousands of times each second. This can lead to the management application being swamped with these events so that network traffic is disrupted. However, it is not desirable to filter out these events because the management application has to know about them.